I know I never write updates here. But since a lot of people I have as friends are living in California, I thought it would be a smart place to post this. I'll be leaving Colorado Springs and heading back to California to stay in March. (I'll also be visiting in December, as usual, but I find the permanent move to be more exciting.)

I'm going to be somewhere in the Bay Area, I don't know exactly where just yet. I'm looking forward to being local again, and I'm hoping to reconnect with old friends, assuming some of you are still there!

So once again I've stopped journaling, oh well.

If you haven't already heard of a photographer named Gregory Colbert, go to http://ashesandsnow.org/en/vision/ and check out the portfolio. He's amazing.

It turns out I'm a lot less flexible than I probably should be at 21. How do I know this? Yoga. Which, right now, alternates between feeling wonderful and feeling somewhat painful. Still, I'm getting better. Slowly. Oh so very, very slowly.

One of our foster dogs bit a volunteer yesterday, which caused lots of fun and excitement...we're not sure what's going on with him, he was improving for a while, then he backslid a bit, and now this. I'm a little (okay, fine, a lot) worried about him. Fortunately, the volunteer wasn't mad at anyone but herself - she says he gave her plenty of warning, and she just wasn't paying enough attention. It wasn't as serious as it could have been, either. It's still scary, though.

You know those scheduling things that really annoy you? So, about a month ago my grandfather and I were trying to figure out my schedule, because he's flying the whole family to Southern California this coming weekend to celebrate my father's birthday. And I had a training class scheduled to start tomorrow at 6pm, that I absolutely couldn't miss. So instead of getting to spend a few days on the beach, I'll be flying in at noon on Saturday, and my flight home leaves at 1pm on Sunday. And guess what? The class was cancelled. Fun, huh?

Oh well..I really shouldn't spend this whole time bitching. Life is actually pretty good right now. It just doesn't feel that way as it gets late and my poor muscles start to complain...loudly...about all the extra work I've been making them do.

I think it's time for advil.

I'm done. Well, except for work. But I have my spring schedule set, my parking permit purchased, my tuition downpayment on its way, and my finals are over. I couldn't possibly care less about my grades, so I don't even have to worry about that part!

All I have is work. Which really isn't so bad, now that I'm really only coming into the facility to teach, rather than working my ass off in the office every moment that I wasn't teaching.

Oh, and for those of you in California, I come home on Thursday. I'm staying at my mom's until the 28th, then ruunning like hell back to Colorado.

Two out of three finals are done, I think I did okay on both of them.

This last take-home is driving me nuts, though - I've already put up with two of his stupid exams, I don't feel like doing a third. It's our primatology professor, and he insists on asking extremely open questions, and then grades with really specific things in mind.

Example: Question 1 reads, "What purposes do field studies of primates serve?" We discussed it during classs. He wants to know about what you can study, what you can't study, what a field study is, what the differences in results might be if you study a captive troop vs. a 'wild' troop. He wants us to discuss what the word 'wild' means, and if there is such a thing. He wants us to talk about the challenges of acclimatizing your research subjects to your presence without putting them, yourself, or other people in danger. He wants us to discuss alternatives to an actual in person field study (radio telemetry, video surveillance, etc.) as well as discuss the possibility of field studies in zoos, research facilities and other captive environments. He wants us to list things you could only learn in a 'wild' field study, versus things you might not be able to learn.

You get the picture...and his grading is fairly arbitrary. I could cover six of those areas in beautiful detail with excellent examples and explanations and still lose points because I missed some of the things that we're supposed to know fall under the general category of "purposes."

That said, he likes how I write, so I've done fine on all of his exams, and I'll probably do fine on this one, too. It's just irritating for him to have such specific things in mind and ask such a broad, general sort of question.

...and yet nowhere near ready to go to sleep. *sigh*

Spent all day today at our 'Howl-a-day Bazaar,' our yearly garage sale at work. I ate entirely too much fudge and spent entirely too much time wandering aimlessly through the building, looking at clothing I'd already looked at multiple times. We didn't do as well as we have done in previous years, but we did all right - though not because we had a lot of people, we just had a few people who bought a ton of stuff.

Honestly, while not my favorite of our fundraisers, it is a nice break from our usual hectic Saturday full of classes. But coming home feeling like my brain has melted out of my ears made it hard to do my statistics assigment - I'll have to do it tomorrow, instead. Sad.

I am once again, and somewhat obsessively, playing this game that currently has me so addicted. It's an excellent way to waste time while I refuse to go to sleep at 8pm, no matter how tired I might feel.

i was told that a person i don't know says i should start writing in my livejournal again. i realize that this is a bit of a weird reason to start writing again, but that's fine.

no promises...i've tried to start writing again, and usually without much success. but we'll see how it goes.

i'm trying to motivate myself to a) register for classes and b) start working on the final paper and final project for, respectively, primatology and statistics.

i've come to the discovery that a few things are needed in order to make a statistics class not suck:
1. A textbook with a table of contents and without typos
2. A professor who actually knows what he's talking about
3. A set of powerpoint slides without typos
4. Some sort of consistency between what the text book says and what the professor says.

without these four critical elements, a statistics class really sucks.

anyway, i should probably go be productive. or, more accurately, i should pretend i'm being productive while i continue playing games. :)

[Start ]
What time is it?: 10:24pm
What is the date?: 01-09-05
Why are you filling this out? Because i've spent the whole day doing tedious projects and desperately needed a break

[ Me ]
Name: dana
Do you like it?: Sure
Nicknames: lili, kitten, pussy...haven't heard that one in a long time
If you could change your first name, what would it be?: i don't think i would
DOB: 09-28-84
Height: 5'2
Hair color: Auburn, mostly brown with some red
Eye color: Hazel
Where do you live?: Colorado
Do you like it there?: No
Why/Why not: The people
Astrological sign: Libra
Shoe Size: 6 1/2

[ Family ]
Parents names: Ann and Roger (mother/stepfather), Rod and Shirlie (father/stepmother)
Do you have any siblings?: No
If so, what are their names and ages?:
Are your parents divorced/remarried/single?: Divorced and remarried, both.
Pets: Between myself, my roommate and all my parents? Lots.
Names: Wizard (Mom's dog), Cairo (Dad's dog), Apollo and Artemis (Dad's cats), Kaia (my dog), Gypsy (my roommate's dog), Oliver and Bunny (my roommate's cats), Kisha and Sabrina (my cats)
Do you like your family: i guess?
Favorite relative: On the off-chance that any family members are reading this, i plead the fifth

[ Favorites ]
Number: 3
Color: Black, Scarlet, Silver
Car: Volvo Station Wagon from 1993...hopefully i'll have a new one soon
Season: Autumn
Holiday: New Years
Months: February (for this year)
Day of the week: Tuesday, Thursday
Grade so far:10th, i guess
Sport: Does dancing count?
Class:i haven't started school again yet
Teacher so far: Mr. Farrell
Drink: Smirnof's fizzy raspberry girly-drink
Candy: Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Food: Sushi
Fruit: Mandarin oranges, raspberries
Veggie: Carrot
Dessert: Cheesecake
TV show: Radio Free Roscoe, Daria or (i hate to admit it) Degrassi: The Next Generation
Radio station: None
CD: The Avenue Q Soundtrack
Movie: Preaching to the Perverted
Song: There are several
Word: Nyee!
Phrase: "Dammit!"
Animal: All of them
Flower: Calla Lilies
Clothing store: i don't really care
States (that you've been to):California
Ice cream: Cake batter ice cream from Coldstone Creamery

[ this or that ]
Me/You: erm?
AOL/AIM: AIM
CD/Cassette: CD
DVD/VCR: DVD
Radio/CD: CD
Jeans/Khakis: Khakis
Car/Truck: Car
Corvette/Camero: Corvette
Strong/Weak: Weak
Lunch/Dinner: Lunch
Abercrombie/Hollister: Neither
Gap/Old Navy: Gap...i don't like either much, but Old Navy never fits me
Nsync/BSB: Neither
Britney/Christina: Neither
Love/Lust: Love, but i have to admit to liking both
Gone In 60 Seconds/The Fast and the Furious: Gone in 60 Seconds
Inside/Outside: Inside
Lipstick/Lipgloss:Chapstick
Silver/Gold: Silver
Piercings/Tattoos: Piercings
Football/Basketball: Neither
Thunder/Lightning: Lightning
This/That: That

[ Friends ]
Who is your best girl friend?: AJ
Guy friend: Dmitri
Do you get along with people easily?: For the most part
Why/Why not: Part of who i am, i guess
Who have you known the longest?: No clue
Who do you hate the most?: i don't really hate people
Was your crush/bf/gf a close friend before you liked them? nope
Craziest: i don't have many friends
Loudest:see above
Funniest:see above
Quietest:i have no quiet frieds
Most caring: My friends are all caring, that's part of why they're my friends
Most understanding:Mike
Best dressed:No clue
Biggest flirt:Mark
Most loyal:Mike
Most athletic:Luke
If you were stuck with only 2 friends, who would you pick and why?: Mike and AJ, i guess.
If you were the opposite sex, which member of the same sex (as you are now) would you date and why?: i have no clue
Most likely to be on America's Most Wanted: Dmitri
Most likely to be a stripper: Me
Doctor: John
Teacher: Me
Stay at home:Mike
One you'd travel across the world for: There are several
If you could take 5 friends to paradise with you to live, who would you take? i don't know that i have 5 friends i'd want to take
Who would do anything for a thousand dollars?: Most of us
Who has the nicest parents?: No idea
Who is like your adopted sister/brother?: Dina
Who is the most like you?:AJ, in some ways...but very different in others

[ Past ]
If you could take back one thing you did, what would it be and why?: i don't really think that way
Do you have any regrets?: see above
Last thing you said: "God dammit."
Last song you heard: Darkenu (it's in Hebrew, i was organizing Israeli Dance music)
Last person you talked to: AJ
If you could get back together with an ex, who would it be and why?: i don't know

[ Present ]
What are you doing right now?: Watching Futurama with AJ and putting new batteries into an alarm clock
What CD is in your CD player?: None
Are you cold?: Not really
How are you sitting? Curled up on the couch
Is there music on?: No
What time is it?: 10:49pm
Where are your parents? In a different state, i have no idea what they're doing

[Future ]
How old will you be when you graduate high school?: I was 17
Are you going to get married?: i doubt it
Although you cant tell who you'll marry, is there anyone you'd wish it would be?: Not really...spending my life with someone is different from marrying them
Are you going to have children?: i doubt it
How many?: i continue to doubt it
What will you name them?: i'd probably pick silly names
Do you want to go to college?: i start back in school on the 18th, of my own choice
What kind of car will you want to drive: A small SUV or large station wagon
What kind of job will you have: i'm not sure
What's your expectations for when your 25?: Who knows?

[ Have you ever ]
Drank: Yes
Smoked: Yes
Skinny Dipped: Yes
Prank called the police: No
Been followed, etc.: Yes
Been high: Yes
Done drugs: Yes
If so, what?: Pot, e, acid, shrooms...i think i'm missing some
Met someone off the net: Yeah
Been in a fist fight: i've punched someone
Punched your sibling/parent: No
Wished you'd die: On occasion
Tried to commit suicide: No
Broken a bone: No
Driven illegally: Once or twice
Thrown things at your parents: No
Runaway: Kind of?
Filled out a survey this long: Yes

[ Others ]
Do you write in cursive or print?: Print
Do you believe in God?: In a manner of speaking
What do you think of rainbows?: Spiffy!
Do you have any piercings/tattoos?: Piercings
If you could live anywhere else, where would you live?: i'd go back to the Bay Area
Do you have braces or glasses?: Contact lenses
Like milk and cookies?: Allergic to milk
Ever worn black nail polish?: Yes
What color nail polish do you have on?: None
Do you do things even when your parents say no?: It doesn't matter anymore, but yes, i used to
What is your favorite song to "rock out" to?: No clue
Ever taken anything from a hotel?: Yes
Do you think this is stupidly long?: Yes
Did you like it?: i guess?
Why/Why not: It was good for killing time

[ Finish ]
What time is it?: 10:54pm
What is the date?: 01-09-05
Why did you just do this?: Killing time

So AJ checked her e-mail this morning, and there was a woman in Colorado Springs looking to find a home for two six-year old female bengal cats. And they're now our's. In my bedroom. Meeting our cats. This is extremely exciting.





Aren't they gorgeous? Right now, the snow leopard's name is Sabrina and the darker one is Kisha, I'm not sure that they're going to keep their names. Give opinions if you want!

(Yes, I know the pictures are down right now...hopefully the site will be back shortly so you can actually see the pretty kitties!)

So it's only been a week since i told my bosses that there was only so much stressful unpaid work that i could manage, and i've finally started to feel better because i'm finally taking time off. And on Saturday our office manager (who is 10 weeks from her due date) woke up with severe abdominal pains. They're not sure if it's kidney stones or appendicitis, neither are fun even when you aren't pregnant, and guess who's still the only one who knows the office as well as she does? *sigh* i think they're paying me this time...if not, i don't think I'm doing it.

But i have some time before i go, so i'm going to waste it doing fun pointless internet stuff.

Firsts:

First Best Friend: Elizabeth White, who i haven't seen in...um...wow...a very long time.
First Car: My '93 Volvo station wagon, who is still nameless. And still mine, although i'm on a hunt for a new car.
First Screen Name: AthenaGrey. i don't use it anymore for new accounts, but i've still got several accounts with that name.
First Self-Purchased Album: i think it was No Doubt, Tragic Kingdom...no promises, though, my memory sucks.
First Funeral: My mother's father, when i was eleven or twelve, i think.
First Pets: Several fish, then Wizard, the border terrier my mother got me for valentine's day.
First Piercing: My ears, my birthday present from my stepmother. i think it was sophomore year, so i would've been 14, i think.
First Kiss: Eric. That seems very weird to me.
First Credit Card: Don't have one. Just my ATM/Visa, but it's not a credit card.
First Enemy: Chris, in middle school. We fought long and hard over lunch in the courtyard, thinking back on it, it was kind of fun. i threw a full can of soda at his head, it was probably my first violent act, as well.
First Musician you Remember Hearing in your House: i think it would The Beattles, Rocky Raccoon.

Lasts:

Last Cigarette: In Southern California over labor day weekend, a couple drags off a clove at the party.
Last Long Car Ride: About a month ago, driving from the Springs to Fort Collins, then over to Boulder, then back to the Fort before coming home.
Last Good Cry: A couple days ago, during a phone call. And that's about all you get to know about it.
Last Library Book Checked Out: It's been years...i know better, now, i never remember to return library books.
Last Movie Seen: 'Rainbow Brite and the Star-Stealer,' it recently came out on DVD and i bought it for AJ.
Last Beverage Drank: Water, earlier this morning.
Last Food Consumed: Slightly dried-out pasta. Last night's dinner became this morning's breakfast.
Last Phone Call Received: Lauren (one of the bosses), telling me about Michelle and asking me to come in today.
Last Time Showered: Yesterday morning, i'll have to shower in the evening today.
Last Shoes Worn: The black Sketchers that i've had at least since freshman year.
Last CD Played: Bad Religion, 'Process of Belief'
Last Item Bought: Lunch on Saturday, we drove through McDonald's.
Last Annoyance: I think that would definitely be having to go in today, and potentially every day we're open for the next ten weeks...it'll be nice to earn some money, but i HATE DOING MICHELLE'S JOB.
Last Disappointment: Realizing that the problems i'm having with Kaia (my dog) are because she doesn't have the personality i was hoping she would have, and there's no way to change that.
Last Time Wanting to Die: i'm not sure...it's been a long time, now.
Last Shirt Worn: My green Animal Instincts work shirt, all warm and out of the dryer this morning.
Last Website Visited: http://www.somethingpositive.com/
Last Word you Said: hush (to Kaia, who won't stop crying and is driving me totally nuts)
Last Song You Sang: Bad Religion, 'Broken'